Head-To-Head Survey: Worthington Enterprises (NYSE:WOR) vs. Quanex Building Products (NYSE:NX)

Quanex Building Products (NYSE:NX) and Worthington Enterprises (NYSE:WOR) are both industrials companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, dividends, risk, institutional ownership, valuation, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Profitability

This table compares Quanex Building Products and Worthington Enterprises’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Quanex Building Products	2.43%	11.61%	4.30%
Worthington Enterprises	11.50%	16.71%	9.29%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Quanex Building Products and Worthington Enterprises”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Quanex Building Products	$1.84 billion	0.48	-$250.81 million	$0.99	19.56
Worthington Enterprises	$1.38 billion	2.20	$156.09 million	$3.31	18.79

Worthington Enterprises has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Quanex Building Products. Worthington Enterprises is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Quanex Building Products, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

97.5% of Quanex Building Products shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 51.6% of Worthington Enterprises shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.9% of Quanex Building Products shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 2.5% of Worthington Enterprises shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Risk and Volatility

Quanex Building Products has a beta of 0.92, suggesting that its share price is 8% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Worthington Enterprises has a beta of 1.29, suggesting that its share price is 29% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Quanex Building Products pays an annual dividend of $0.32 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.7%. Worthington Enterprises pays an annual dividend of $0.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.3%. Quanex Building Products pays out 32.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Worthington Enterprises pays out 24.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for Quanex Building Products and Worthington Enterprises, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Quanex Building Products	0	2	1	0	2.33
Worthington Enterprises	0	1	1	0	2.50

Quanex Building Products presently has a consensus price target of $28.00, suggesting a potential upside of 44.59%. Worthington Enterprises has a consensus price target of $75.00, suggesting a potential upside of 20.61%. Given Quanex Building Products’ higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe Quanex Building Products is more favorable than Worthington Enterprises.

Summary

Worthington Enterprises beats Quanex Building Products on 10 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Quanex Building Products

Quanex Building Products Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides components for the fenestration industry in the United States, rest of Europe, Canada, Asia, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company operates through three segments: North American Fenestration, European Fenestration, and North American Cabinet Components. It offers flexible insulating glass spacers, extruded vinyl profiles, window and door screens, and precision-formed metal and wood products, as well as cabinet doors and other components for original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in the kitchen and bathroom cabinet industry. In addition, the company provides various non-fenestration components and products, including solar panel sealants, trim moldings, vinyl decking, fencing, water retention barriers, and conservatory roof components. It sells its products to OEMs in the building products industry through sales representatives, direct sales force, distributors, and independent sales agents. Quanex Building Products Corporation was founded in 1927 and is based in Houston, Texas.

About Worthington Enterprises

Worthington Enterprises, Inc. operates as an industrial manufacturing company. It operates through three segments: Building Products, Consumer Products, and Sustainable Energy Solutions. The Building Products segment sells refrigerant and LPG cylinders, well water and expansion tanks, fire suppression tanks, chemical tanks, and foam and adhesive tanks for gas producers, and distributors. The Consumer Products segment provides products in the tools, outdoor living, and celebrations end markets. Its products include propane-filled cylinders for torches, camping stoves and other applications, LPG cylinders, handheld torches, helium-filled balloon kits, specialized hand tools and instruments, and drywall tools and accessories This segment sells its products primarily to mass merchandisers, retailers, and distributors under the Coleman, Bernzomatic, Balloon Time, Mag-Torch, General, Garden-Weasel, Pactool International, Hawkeye, Worthington Pro Grade, and Level5 brands. The Sustainable Energy Solutions segment sells onboard fueling systems and services, as well as gas containment solutions and services for storage, transport, and distribution of industrial gases. It includes high pressure and acetylene cylinders for life support systems and alternative fuel cylinders used to hold CNG and hydrogen for automobiles, buses, and light-duty trucks. The company was formerly known as Worthington Industries, Inc. Worthington Enterprises, Inc. was founded in 1955 and is headquartered in Columbus, Ohio.